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Gossip: Katy Perry Getting $25 Million to Judge ‘American Idol’; JLo In Charge Of Her Relationship With A-Rod

Everyone may be laughing at Katy Perry’s ‘SNL’ performances, but Ms. Katy’s laughing all the way to the bank!

According to reports, the singer is getting a cool $25 million to judge the new ‘American Idol.’

via TMZ:

Multiple sources tell us ABC was desperate to sign a name before the Upfronts last week, when honchos announced she was the lead judge. As one source put it, “Katy had all the leverage. If ABC ended up announcing the show without a judge, they’d be screwed.”

TMZ broke a story way back in 2012 that ‘A.I.’ was trying to get Katy as a judge but she rejected the network’s $20 mil offer.

As we reported, ABC tried to get Kelly Clarkson but at the last minute she jumped ship and went to NBC’s “The Voice.” NBC also snagged Jennifer Hudson.

We’re also told ABC is “on the verge” of signing the deal with Ryan Seacrest to host the show. Sources connected with the first run of ‘Idol’ tell us Ryan was making $15 mil a season at his high point.

JLO Is In Charge Of Her Relationship With A-Rod

A source says, “Jennifer is aware of his past womanizing ways, so she wants to make sure she’s in control ….. She has him on a very tight leash …. Jennifer is wearing the pants in the relationship!”

The insider adds that he texts his whereabouts to Jennifer’s assistant when they’re not together! Sounds like a healthy start LOL!

Love the fresh dirt we bring over daily from Naughty Gossip? Let us know in the comments!

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The Fresh Toast Marijuana Legislative Roundup: May 22

The fight to legalize marijuana in the United States made some significant strides last week. Michigan moved one step closer to placing an initiative on the 2018 ballot. And a legalization bill is currently sitting on the desk of Vermont Gov. Phil Scott. Read all about these developments and more in The Fresh Toast’s Marijuana Legislative Roundup for May 22.

National:

Two Colorado congressmen introduced legislation on Thursday that seeks to prevent federal law enforcement from cracking down on states where cannabis is legal for recreational or medical purposes. The Respect States’ and Citizens’ Rights Act of 2017 would insert a provision into the Controlled Substances Act stating that the act shall not be construed to preempt state marijuana laws.

Marijuana is listed as a Schedule I substance under the CSA, placing it in the most tightly-restricted category of narcotics along with drugs such as heroin and MDMA. The bill comes in response to threats from the Trump administration to crack down on state-legal marijuana businesses, and was previously introduced in 2012, 2013, and 2015.

Vermont:

On Thursday, legislation landed on Vermont Governor Phil Scott’s desk that would legalize recreational cannabis for adults. Under the bill, adults 21 and older could possess up to an ounce of marijuana and grow a total of six plants at home beginning in July of 2018. The measure would also create a commission to study marijuana tax and regulatory systems implemented in other states, and make recommendations as to how Vermont should proceed.

The bill does not specifically provide for any such system, which would require further legislative action based on the commission’s report. Governor Scott is expected to neither sign nor veto the measure, allowing it to become law by default after five days.

Delaware:

On Thursday, the Delaware state Senate unanimously approved a revised bill that modestly loosens the restrictions on medical marijuana for PTSD patients. The original legislation, which failed to pass on Tuesday, would have added debilitating anxiety disorders to the list of conditions eligible for treatment with cannabis. In the end, the measure passed by Senators will merely allow any physician to prescribe marijuana to treat PTSD. Currently, only psychiatrists can authorize PTSD patients to use medical cannabis.

Michigan:

On Thursday, advocates of marijuana legalization in Michigan moved one step closer to placing an initiative on the ballot in 2018. The Michigan Board of State Canvassers approved language for a measure that would legalize marijuana for adults 21 and older. If backers of the legislation are able to gather 252,000 signatures within six months, the state legislature with have the option of either voting on the bill or sending it to the ballot for voters to decide.

If enacted, the measure would legalize possession of up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis and cultivation of up to 12 plants.  The Republican-controlled legislature is generally seen as unlikely to vote on the measure if presented.

Rhode Island:

On Wednesday, members of the Rhode Island House Judiciary Committee unanimously approved legislation to form a commission to study marijuana legalization. If enacted, H. 5551 would create a 15-member commission tasked with studying the effects of recreational marijuana in states where legalization has been implemented, such as Washington and Colorado. The study commission would produce a report providing recommendations on how best to implement cannabis legalization in Rhode Island. The bill will now go to the floor for a vote of the full House of Representatives.

New Jersey:

On Monday, New Jersey state Senator Nicholas Scutari introduced a bill to legalize recreational marijuana in the state. Under the legislation, adults would be able to legally possess up to an ounce of cannabis flower, 16 ounces of edibles, and seven grams of concentrates. A new Division of Marijuana Enforcement would be tasked with regulating the recreational system, and a sales tax of no more than 25 percent would be phased in over the course of five years if the legislation is enacted.

Governor Chris Christie has recently made his stark opposition to marijuana legalization known, so the measure is unlikely to become law under his administration. However, the governor is up for reelection in November and the frontrunner in the race, Phil Murphy, has expressed support for the idea.

This Healthy Beet Latte Is Packed With Nutrition And Marijuana

When you stay on top of the trends, you can see way too much of the same thing. Millennial pink has been kicking around since 2013 easily, so it’s utter saturation now even into food is peak internet fodder. Though I fully support everyone’s inner unicorn, having calorie slammed sugar bombs isn’t a feasible habit. With this color based trend in food, there’s luckily many healthy alternatives that are still delicious, like this Beet Latte.

Hip cafes in Manhattan are making lattes in all the colors of the rainbow, especially millennial pink, but they aren’t your typical beverage. Each one is stained by a different and generally healthy ingredient, like blue algae, spirulina, beet, and charcoal. Beet sounds like the only tasty one, so it was the most appropriate to hack for adding cannabis, and it’s as trendy as a new Snapchat filter.

Beet flavors things so pleasantly, and it’s even used as a source of sugar in many countries over cane sugar. It has an earthy, dirt-like taste quality to it that when mixed with creamy things, is a delicious pleasure. It’s why goat cheese and roasted beets go so well together. This cannabis infused Beet Latte tastes like dirt cake, and I mean that in the best way.

Photos by Maria Penaloza

Vegan Beet Latte

Danielle Guercio 2017
14mg THC per latte

  • 1 c beet juice
  • ½ c coconut milk
  • 1 tsp cannabis glycerin tincture
  • 1 Tbs demerara sugar
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 1 tsp turmeric

Heat up beet juice with sugar, turmeric, and cinnamon stick until warm, avoid boiling. Remove from heat and stir in cannabis tincture. Dispense ½ cup into two mugs, you can stretch this to three if you want to drop the potency, just use smaller mugs and ⅓ cup of the beet mixture in each.

In a milk frother or on the stove, heat up coconut milk until it’s warmed, again don’t boil. Top each mug off with some milk, it will blend itself into a tasty layer. Garnish with a cinnamon stick if desired.

Photos by Maria Penaloza

*Cannabis Infused Glycerin Tincture

In an oven safe container double sealed with foil, decarboxylate 3.5 grams finely ground cannabis at 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Put cannabis in a mason jar or vacuum sealed bag, pour over 2 oz vegetable glycerin and seal tightly. Place in a water bath at just under boiling for 1 hour. Strain and keep contents in a sterilized container. Stores indefinitely in freezer.

Photos by Maria Penaloza

Whether you’re looking for a coffee and tea alternative or just enjoy colorful and fun experiments, this is a winning drink. You can add seasonings that we didn’t, like allspice, clove, and nutmeg, if you really want to go for the cake theme.

If you know how to do milk art, you can make this thing look as good as any $6 gentrificappucino any day. No matter how you started your day, after this you will feel much more aligned with your inner chill.

Photos: Maria Penaloza

The Cannabis Industry Will Be Bigger Than Ice Cream, Streaming Music, And Girl Scout Cookies

A new report from Marijuana Business Daily estimates that the total demand for marijuana in the cannabis industry is worth around $45-$50 billion in the US.

For context, they put these numbers alongside a few other classic American staples:

  • Ice cream sales are around $5.1 billion
  • Movie tickets come in at $11.1 billion
  • Girl Scout Cookies rake in $776 million
  • Paid streaming music is a $2.5 billion industry

Surprised? There’s more. As Forbes notes:

The report points out that these employees spend their earnings on housing, food, travel and entertainment, which helps other local businesses. The launch of all these cannabis businesses has sparked a real estate boom in spaces that were for the most part previously vacant. Tourism is bringing new travel dollars into these states as well.

The report estimates that for every $1 consumers spend at dispensaries, another $3 in economic benefits are created in cities, states and nationwide. State and local municipalities are plugging holes in their budgets with the marijuana tax receipts and making infrastructure repairs and boosting schools.

“On the recreational side of the business, the originally legalized states are still posting massive growth,” Chris Walsh, editor of Marijuana Business Daily, which published the report, said according to Forbes. “The demand for marijuana is so enormous in this country.”

Researchers Will Pay You $10 Per Hour To Smoke Marijuana

A team of scientific minds from the halls of Washington State University is currently looking to employee a handful of enthusiastic consumers to smoke marijuana and get paid.

According to a report from CBS-affiliate KREM, researchers are willing to pay people $10 per hour to simply smoke marijuana and help them find a solution to gauging cannabis impairment. Although several prototypes from various companies have surfaced over the past several years, there is still no accurate breath detection device available for marijuana intoxication.

“We’re trying to create a roadside tool for law enforcement and businesses to detect if someone is inebriated or under the influence of marijuana… This is cutting edge – there is nothing in the world like this,” Research Assistant Nathan Weller told the news source.

In order to qualify for participation in the study, volunteers need to be at least 21 years old, a resident of Pullman, Washington and willing to submit to a series of preliminary testing prior to acceptance. Once the candidate has been approved, they would be given free reign to purchase any marijuana of their choosing from a neighborhood dispensary to smoke at home until the time comes for evaluation. At that point, researchers plan to send taxi cabs to gather the participants in an effort to prevent any of them from driving under the influence.

As it stands, more than half the nation has legalized marijuana in some form or fashion, but unlike with alcohol, there is no detection method available that can differentiate between someone who has smoked marijuana in the past week or within the past two hours.

However, Weller feels confident that his team’s work will lead to a solution.

“Law enforcement and businesses are struggling to enforce a no drug policy in legalized states. Often times, they have to wait for test results. This tool helps both government agencies and businesses get fast results to determine who is in fact under the influence,” Weller said.

In order to prevent innocent people from being tossed in jail, it is absolutely imperative that science finds an effective device for determining marijuana impairment. But that is easier said than done.

“We don’t have a consensus as to what levels of THC are consistently correlated with behavioral impairment,” Paul Armentano, deputy director for NORML, told Business Insider in 2016.

Anyone interested in getting involved in the study will need to act fast. Researchers are reportedly enrolling volunteers beginning this week, with the examination expected to last until sometime around mid-June.

Gossip: Sasheer Zamata, Bobby Moynihan, Vanessa Bayer Leaving ‘Saturday Night Live’; Who Gets Prince’s Estate Money

Sasheer Zamata is leaving “Saturday Night Live” and will not return for the new season, multiple outlets reported on Sunday, May 21.

The 31-year-old comedian, who joined the cast of SNL during its 38th season in 2014, performed in her last show on Saturday, May 20 — the season 42 finale — according to “Entertainment Tonight.”

She leaves the show alongside Bobby Moynihan and Vanessa Bayer, who previously announced their departures.

Zamata joined the NBC comedy show at a time when the series was being criticized for its lack of diversity. She became known for her impersonations of Michelle Obama, Beyoncé and Rihanna.

While the comedian has not confirmed her departure and NBC is not commenting, Zamata posted a photo on Instagram on Sunday morning that showed her being lifted up by “Weekend Update” anchor Colin Jost and guest host Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

Who Gets Prince’s Estate Money?

A Minnesota judge has officially ruled that Prince‘s six siblings are the heirs to his estate.

via Page Six:

In a ruling made public Friday, Carver County District Judge Kevin Eide declared that Prince died without a will and that his sister, Tyka Nelson, and five half-siblings are his heirs.

There are people who filed appeals after their claims of heirship were rejected. Eide said that if the appellate courts send those cases back to him, he’ll still fully consider them.

Eide also said Prince’s assets won’t be distributed without a formal court order and that nothing will be distributed that might adversely affect the claims of those with pending appeals.

Eide had previously said he wouldn’t declare the siblings as heirs until those appeals had been decided. Attorneys for those who appealed said their interests would be harmed if the district court didn’t wait out the appeals process.

But lawyers for Prince’s siblings didn’t want to wait, saying further delays would have increased costs to the estate and impede its efficient administration.

Prince died April 2016 of an accidental drug overdose.

Court filings suggest his estate is worth around $200 million. Federal and state estate taxes are expected to consume about half the value.

Hopefully now everyone can stop fighting about it.

Love the fresh dirt we bring over daily from Naughty Gossip? Let us know in the comments!

Bobby Moynihan Is SNL’s Character Comedian Genius And Here’s His Most Hysterical Sketch

You’re not supposed to notice Bobby Moynihan. Though he’s been on “Saturday Night Live” for nine seasons, he disappears on screen, slipping fully into whatever character he plays or creates. A character comedian on level with Will Ferrell and Amy Poehler, able to wholeheartedly become someone else before your eyes, Moynihan is.

Those characters of his own making are singular and singularly-minded. Drunk Uncle, Anthony Crispino, Retail Employee Niff. All woefully ignorant, tunnel-visioned creatures, unable to see the disparity of their perceptions and reality, which is where the comedy comes from. Even his impressions—Chris Christie, Guy Fieri, Snooki—operate in that same manner. It’s possibly why Moynihan can mine fresh jokes out of these public figures on the butt of so many already.

With all these characters he isn’t mean, but empathetic, often underscoring these larger-than-life personalities with a layer of loneliness or sadness, reminding you his characters only act in an obnoxious manner because they want to be loved yet know they’re not. And while Kenan Thompson will forever remain the SNL king of jump-cut reaction shots, Bobby Moynihan is a close second in making you laugh solely by the look in his eyes or shape of his face.

It was recently announced Bobby Moynihan is officially leaving SNL following nine seasons on the show. As legendary as the comedians who have rolled through Studio 8H, no one has made me laugh harder than Moynihan. At least when we’re discussing his best sketch, his laughs per minute rating is a 99+ and as silly as anything the show has ever done. When watching this live, my roommates at the time burst into the living room, worried over my safety because I was howling, giggling, and crying. To quote Louis C.K., I thought it was “hilarious.” That sketch would be Kirby and his kitty Fuzz Alrdin.

https://www.hulu.com/watch/409945

This is the first of two appearances Moynihan made as Kirby. You know how some episodes of South Park, Trey Parker and Matt Stone will hit you with a funny gag, then pound that gag into the ground, only to resurrect it by episode’s end and it transform into something funnier than it was originally? Think of this sketch following that same pattern as Moynihan plays a flamboyant astronaut part of a crew on a mission that is humanity’s only hope. But he won’t stop talking about his kitty cat.

Moynihan commits all the way for this sketch. At first you’re unsure how to accept Moynihan’s Kirby, he seems too weird, too out there. But he wears you down through pure repetition of stating, “I miss my little kitty cat.” This sketch disarms you, solely because of Moynihan, and you’re wholly unaware where this is all going, if anywhere at all. The popular and culturally influential SNL sketches exist in this world, and you can usually anticipate the comedy. While still funny, they aren’t gut-bursting like Moynihan’s Kirby because you with someone like this you can’t predict the punchlines. You’re eating out of Moynihan’s hands—and Fuzz Aldrin’s paws—willing to follow him wherever he so chooses.

https://www.hulu.com/watch/544706

If you don’t fall for dumb animals puns like “Tom Cruise Cat in Frisky Business” and “Kitty Purry,” that’s fine. This sketch isn’t for you (neither is BoJack Horseman perhaps). Both of Moynihan’s Kirby and Fuzz Aldrin sketches are delirious and nonsensical and won’t be the first mention in his SNL history bio. But it showcases why I love watching Bobby Moynihan throughout his run on Saturday Night Live. He knows he’s ridiculous, but Moynihan bores full steam ahead regardless, content to let the whole world think of him what they will. I’ll miss him. And his little kitty cat.

Banned In School: Are Fidget Spinners Helping Or Just Annoying?

Fidget spinners were introduced as a tool for treating ADHD and autism, but have become a distraction, according to schools in New York and Florida.

The spinners are usually small discs with three round edges that produce a calming effect (and annoying hum) when spun. People use them because they soothe, and there’s no shortage of YouTube videos of them in action. These devices promise greater concentration, especially for those that battle with some type of attention disorder, which is apparently everyone on the planet these days.

Because scientists and doctors disagree that the gadget actually creates any real progress for those who suffer from ADHD or anxiety, schools have banned the device from class rooms  in Florida and New York after being overrun with students spinning in class.

So Fidget Spinner, are you a good thing, or just another way to annoy adults?

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Are ICE Agents Using Marijuana As An Excuse To Arrest Immigrants?

On Wednesday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reported a nearly 40 percent increase in immigrant arrests in the first 100 days of the Trump administration compared to the same time period in 2016, including a nearly 20 percent increase in ICE arrests of immigrants convicted of a criminal offense from 25,786 people in 2016 to 30,473 people this year.

It is unclear from the data made available by ICE on Wednesday what proportion of these convictions stemmed from drug charges. However, a 2014 Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University report showed that nearly 250,000 — one-quarter of a million — people were deported for nonviolent drug offenses from 2008 to 2014. A nonviolent drug offense was the cause of deportation for more than one in ten (11 percent of) people deported in 2013 for any reason — and nearly one in five (19 percent) of those who were deported because of a criminal conviction.

Advocates stress that these numbers can be expected to continue to rise dramatically and are the latest sign that the Trump administration threatens to exploit drug war policing and prosecution tools to target and deport large numbers of immigrants for drug law violations, even in cases where drug charges are dismissed or possession is lawful under state law.

“The Trump administration is seeking to escalate the failed war on drugs as a means to further criminalize immigrants and people of color,” said Jerónimo Saldaña, Policy Manager at Drug Policy Alliance’s Office of National Affairs. “Not only are immigrants more likely to be entangled in the criminal justice system for engaging in the same practice as whites, but the threat of deportations equates to an unconscionable double punishment.This double standard, along with hateful rhetoric that targets ‘felons not families’, inflicts serious harm on countless communities. ”

Last month, Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly announced that the Trump Administration would continue to use marijuana possession as a reason for deporting immigrants. “ICE will continue to use marijuana possession, distribution and convictions as essential elements as they build their deportation removal apprehension packages for targeted operations against illegal aliens living in the United States,” he said. Marijuana is currently illegal under federal law, but eight states have legalized it for adult use and 28 states have medical marijuana laws. Individuals following state law would be exposed to deportation. In 2013-2014, more than 6,600 people were deported just for personal marijuana possession, and overall, nearly 20,000 people were deported in 2014 alone for simple possession of any drug or drug paraphernalia.

“The Trump administration has made it plain they will even target immigrants who are lawfully using marijuana under state law, including for medical use. It’s outrageous and deplorable to think that our criminal justice system would subject anyone following medical advice under state law to the destructive forces of deportation,” said Jerónimo Saldaña, Policy Manager at Drug Policy Alliance’s Office of National Affairs.

Reports also surfaced this week that Milwaukee County Sheriff David Clarke is expected to be appointed by Homeland Security Secretary John F. Kelly to an assistant secretary position charged with coordinating DHS enforcement activities with local law enforcement. Clarke has a track record of advocating hardline and inhumane tactics against communities of color and immigrants including the use of stop-and-frisk and police round ups of immigrants. Clarke has also come under fire for the deaths of several people incarcerated in the local jail under his watch.

According to the Immigrant Defense Project, one out of every four “criminal removals” – over 250,000 deportations – involved a person whose most serious conviction was for a drug offense. Human Rights Watch released a report in 2015 on drug deportations, noting that, “Thousands of families in the United States have been torn apart in recent years by detention and deportation for drug offenses.” In 2016, the ACLU released a report noting that veterans who have served the country as lawful permanent residents have been “subject to draconian immigration laws that reclassified many minor offenses as deportable crimes, and were effectively banished from this country.”

There have also been moves at the state level to prevent law enforcement from documenting misdemeanor drug crimes and therefore exposing immigrants to harsh deportation proceedings. The New York State Assembly passed legislation that creates a process for sealing the criminal records of people arrested for simple possession of marijuana in public view, providing a measure of protection for immigrants by making it difficult or impossible for immigration authorities to meet their legal burden of proof for a judge to find a lawful permanent resident deportable. Often these arrests were the result of stop-and-frisk encounters targeting young people of color, and immigrant New Yorkers with minor records have already been deported by ICE under the Trump Administration’s crackdown.

WATCH: The 7 Most Memorable Cherry Pie And Coffee Moments In ‘Twin Peaks’

Two of the most notable characters in “Twin Peaks” are uncredited: coffee and cherry pie. They play a huge part in defining the characters and backdrop of the hit ’90s series, which woefully only lasted two seasons. Fortunately for everyone who has been limping along without this twisted show for more than two decades, Showtime has picked up the lifeless body, performed CPR and is now reviving the cult oddity on Sunday.

In anticipation, here are some of the most memorable scenes involving the Double R Diner (played by Twede’s Cafe near Seattle, which would really appreciate it if  you knew they serve many other flavors of pie) that’s referenced just as often, if not more, than the actual human actors when tripping down memory lane. Also noted: a suspicious number of bumblebee references.

1. Dale Cooper’s introduction to the “best in the tri-counties” cherry pie, which he subsequently orders two more pieces of. “You must have the metabolism of a bumblebee,” says Sheriff Harry Truman when Cooper orders two more slices during the show’s second episode.

 
2. Series creator David Lynch, who plays FBI Regional Bureau Chief Gordon Cole, falls in love with RR’s famous dessert…and the waitress, Shelly Johnson. Upon gazing at her beauty he says, “I feel as though my stomach is filled with a team of bumblebees.” Initially wanting “a steak so rare you could sell it at Tiffany’s,” he takes Johnson’s advice and orders pie — in “massive, massive quantities.” Later, he asks shouts for a piece of paper and a pencil so he can write “an epic poem about this gorgeous pie.”

 
3. Agent Cooper declares his famous “a damn fine cup of coffee” line right before he meets Audrey Horne for the first time while eating breakfast at the Great Northern Hotel. He tells the server, “I’ve had…I can’t tell you how many cups of coffee in my life and this…this is one of the best.”

 
4. In dictation to his secretary Diane, Agent Cooper  professes that “the true test of any hotel…is that morning cup of coffee.”

 
5. Agent Cooper’s trippy dream sequence coffee date with a dwarf in the Black Lodge during the show’s final episode.

 
6. Dale Cooper shares one of his secrets to living a good life with Sheriff Harry S. Truman. “Every day, once a day, give yourself a present. It could be a new shirt at a men’s store, a cat nap in your office chair or…two cups of good, hot, black coffee.” Like Christmas.

 
7. Gordon orders three pieces of pie for himself and Shelly before asking Shelly, “do you mind if we share?” It’s the same scene where they also share their first kiss.

 

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